People: Timothy M. Rusche, Partner

Timothy M. Rusche

Biography

Mr. Rusche is a partner in the Los Angeles office of Seyfarth Shaw LLP. He is a member of the Labor & Employment Department as well as the Wage and Hour and Employment Litigation and Counseling Practice Groups. He also serves on the Firm’s Lawyer Development Committee. Mr. Rusche has extensive experience in employment litigation in federal and state courts across the United States and before federal and state administrative agencies. His litigation practice primarily involves the defense of wage and hour class and collective actions. He also devotes a substantial portion of his practice to defending claims for workplace harassment, wrongful termination, employment discrimination, retaliation, and breach of employment contracts. Mr. Rusche has represented small businesses and large corporations in a variety of industries, including hospitality, retail, sports and entertainment, finance and banking, publishing, manufacturing, telecommunications, technology, airline, education, construction, security, shipping, and healthcare.

In addition to several class certification denials and summary judgment victories, Mr. Rusche has had significant recent trial and arbitration victories, including a defense verdict in a jury trial involving claims for off-the-clock work and alleged missed meal and rest breaks, a defense verdict in a collective-action bench trial involving claims for unlawful deductions and failure to pay wages, a judgment for the defense in an age and disability discrimination lawsuit, and a defense verdict in a jury trial involving claims for misclassification and unpaid overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Mr. Rusche has successfully negotiated favorable class action settlements and settled several putative class actions through the dismissal of the plaintiff’s claims for nominal amounts and outright dismissal of class claims with no defense payment.

Mr. Rusche routinely advises clients with respect to workforce restructuring and reductions, wage and hour audits, employment contracts, employment policies, covenants not to compete, employee handbooks, misconduct investigations, and a host of other compliance issues. He also has extensive experience assisting companies with the preparation of responses to petitions for Trade Adjustment Assistance and formulating strategies for efficient data collection for TAA responses.

Mr. Rusche has completed all of the courses which comprised Seyfarth’s Retail University and he is now a certified member of Seyfarth’s Retail Industry Client Team.

Mr. Rusche is a partner in the Los Angeles office of Seyfarth Shaw LLP. He is a member of the Labor & Employment Department as well as the Wage and Hour and Employment Litigation and Counseling Practice Groups. He also serves on the Firm’s Lawyer Development Committee. Mr. Rusche has extensive experience in employment litigation in federal and state courts across the United States and before federal and state administrative agencies. His litigation practice primarily involves the defense of wage and hour class and collective actions. He also devotes a substantial portion of his practice to defending claims for workplace harassment, wrongful termination, employment discrimination, retaliation, and breach of employment contracts. Mr. Rusche has represented small businesses and large corporations in a variety of industries, including hospitality, retail, sports and entertainment, finance and banking, publishing, manufacturing, telecommunications, technology, airline, education, construction, security, shipping, and healthcare.

In addition to several class certification denials and summary judgment victories, Mr. Rusche has had significant recent trial and arbitration victories, including a defense verdict in a jury trial involving claims for off-the-clock work and alleged missed meal and rest breaks, a defense verdict in a collective-action bench trial involving claims for unlawful deductions and failure to pay wages, a judgment for the defense in an age and disability discrimination lawsuit, and a defense verdict in a jury trial involving claims for misclassification and unpaid overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Mr. Rusche has successfully negotiated favorable class action settlements and settled several putative class actions through the dismissal of the plaintiff’s claims for nominal amounts and outright dismissal of class claims with no defense payment.

Mr. Rusche routinely advises clients with respect to workforce restructuring and reductions, wage and hour audits, employment contracts, employment policies, covenants not to compete, employee handbooks, misconduct investigations, and a host of other compliance issues. He also has extensive experience assisting companies with the preparation of responses to petitions for Trade Adjustment Assistance and formulating strategies for efficient data collection for TAA responses.

Mr. Rusche has completed all of the courses which comprised Seyfarth’s Retail University and he is now a certified member of Seyfarth’s Retail Industry Client Team.

Education

J.D., George Washington University Law School (2000) with honorsGeorge Washington Law Review, Editor

B.A., University of Pennsylvania (1997) with honors

Admissions

California

New York

Courts

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

U.S. District Courts for the Central, Southern, Northern, and Eastern Districts of California

U.S. District Courts for the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York

Affiliations

California State Bar

New York State Bar

Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation - Infrastructure Committee Member

Brinderson adv. Rojas, 567 F. Supp. 2d 1205 (represented oil refinery in putative class action in the United States District Court for the Central District of California brought by employees of its subcontractor alleging Labor Code Section 2810 violations - motion to dismiss granted).

Duane Reade, Inc. adv. Damassia, No. 04 CV 8819, United States District Court, Southern District of New York (represented company in a class and collective action lawsuit in which the plaintiffs claimed that they were improperly classified as exempt executives and denied overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act and state labor laws).

Otis Elevator Co. adv. Marquez, No. 3:11-cv-02633 (defended class claims brought by sales representative alleging unpaid commissions upon termination of employment in the United States District Court Southern District of California - obtained dismissal of individual and class allegations before commencement of discovery).

Red Robin International, Inc. adv. Moreno,Case No. Case 2:10-cv-00842-JVS-RNB (defended wage and hour class action in the United States District Court for the Central District of California alleging failure to provide meal and rest periods, failure to provide accurate wage statements, and failure to timely pay wages upon termination of employment - obtained dismissal of individual and class allegations before commencement of discovery).

Represented national retail store in a wage and hour class action in the United States District Court for the Central District of California brought by employees alleging unlawful deductions from final paychecks. The court denied class certification of state law claims. Prevailed at trial against opt-in plaintiffs.

Represented national retail store in a wage and hour class action in the United States District Court for the Central District of California brought by employees alleging that they were misclassified as managers and denied overtime pay and meal and rest breaks. The court denied class certification of state law claims and denied certification of FLSA collective action.

Represented national retail store in a wage and hour action in Los Angeles County Superior Court brought by managers alleging that they had been misclassified as exempt employees. The court denied class certification in part and the remaining claims were favorably resolved.

Represented national retail store in a wage and hour class action in the United States District Court for the Central District of California brought by employees alleging that they were misclassified as managers and denied overtime pay. The court granted defendant’s motion to deny class certification and denied plaintiff’s motion for class certification.

Represented construction supply store in wage and hour class action in the Los Angeles County Superior Court brought by managers alleging that they had been misclassified as exempt employees. Obtained dismissal of class allegations and favorable plaintiff settlement before the commencement of discovery.

Represented security company in a wage and hour class action in Los Angeles Superior Court brought by a former employee alleging missed meal and rest breaks, off-the-clock work, and failure to pay overtime.

Represented oil refinery in wage and hour class action in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California brought by employees alleging meal break violations - claims favorably resolved.

Represented oil refinery in wage and hour class action in the United States District Court for the Central District of California brought by employees alleging meal break violations and failure to pay wages upon termination of employment - claims favorably resolved.

Defending international media conglomerate in a wage and hour action in California state court brought by employees alleging that they were not paid commissions owed to them upon the termination of their employment.

Defending waste management company in a state wage and hour class action and national collective action in the United States District Court for the Central District of California brought by employees alleging misclassification and failure to pay overtime.

Defending financial institution in wage and hour class action in Los Angeles County Superior Court alleging business development officers were misclassified as outside salespeople.

Defending national retail store in wage and hour class action in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California alleging that nonexempt managers work off the clock.

Representative Single-Plaintiff Cases

Cameron Int’l Corp. adv. Armstrong, Case No.CV08-08325, United States District Court, Central District of California (defended race and age discrimination, breach of contract, and wrongful termination lawsuit - case voluntarily dismissed by plaintiff with prejudice before hearing on motion for summary judgment).

Cameron Int’l Corp. adv. Manzo, Case No.: CV-08-08461, United States District Court, Central District of California (defended disability and age discrimination, breach of contract, and wrongful termination lawsuit - dismissed on summary judgment).

Defended international airline in race discrimination lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Arizona. The lawsuit was favorably resolved before discovery commenced.

Defended temporary staffing company against sexual harassment claim in California state court. The lawsuit was favorably resolved before summary judgment motions were filed.

Defended New York Metropolitan Transit Authority in discrimination lawsuit filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. The lawsuit was favorably resolved before summary judgment motions were filed.

Defended international airline in sexual harassment and age discrimination lawsuits filed in California state court. The lawsuits were favorably resolved before summary judgment motions were filed.

Defended a non-profit religious corporation in a matter in the United States District Court for the Central District of California against claims brought by five former employees alleging, among other things, wrongful termination, failure to pay overtime, and negligent hiring. The lawsuit was favorably resolved before summary judgment motions were filed.

Geographies

Our London office operates as Seyfarth Shaw (UK) LLP, an affiliate of Seyfarth Shaw LLP. Seyfarth Shaw (UK) LLP is a limited liability partnership established under the laws of the State of Delaware, USA and is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority with registered number 556927.

Legal services provided by our Australian practice are provided by the Australian legal practitioner partners and employees of Seyfarth Shaw Australia, an Australian partnership.

Our Hong Kong office "Seyfarth Shaw," a registered foreign law firm, is a Hong Kong sole proprietorship and is legally distinct and independent from Seyfarth Shaw LLP, an Illinois limited liability partnership, and its other offices.